Well... maybe not first time. I did paint a Ranger once, but it's been so long ago that I consider myself to be new at this. 🙂

When I bought my 2010, there were a few signs of a cheap-o collision repair at some point in the past. Nothing structural, just seemed like a quickie, "low-ball" bid for an insurance claim, or perhaps a previous owner attempting the repairs. The worst area was the rocker- it was a little rough in spots, and there were those ugly, nasty, streaking rust bubbles. That certainly wouldn't do.

Eventually I plan to get it professionally repaired (I know a couple very good bodywork people in the area), but in the meantime I didn't want to look at those nasty rust bubbles. And with winter coming I wanted to slow any further corrosion as much as I could before a permanent repair is completed.

Nasty, huh? What doesn't show in the pictures are the odd circular grooves cut into the metal beneath the primer and paint- almost like somebody skipped a small cutting wheel across the rocker before priming and painting it.

I did not take this down to bare metal. Like I said... I just wanted to clean up the eyesore on my rocker. I hit the area with some wet 220 sandpaper all over the rusty area, and a little past. I didn't take a pic, but I then hit the area with some rust converter. Once that dried I went over it with some 400 grit paper, then hit it with a rattle can. Since Ford no longer sells touch up paints in spray cans (I'd have gotten a jobber's can if I had access to a spray gun), I got a can mixed at the local Car Quest. I didn't think the touch-up pen Ford sells would do for this job! The big name touch up paints (DupliColor and PlastiKote) don't even offer Smokestone. So 30 bucks later I had my own custom mixed can. Should last me a while. 🙂

And here we are now. Perfect? Nope. But it beats the "keel of a fresh ocean liner" thing I had going before. Yes, that's a run just over the little mud flap. I'm likely the only one who'll be driven crazy by it. And what appear to be other runs along the rear edge of the rocker? Those are dips and waves in the rocker itself. Like I said- it is possible the previous repair was done by someone who'd never seen a car, much less worked on one. This ought to tide me over until a more permanent solution can be implemented.

And I have to hand it to the local Car Quest (Hall's Auto Parts of Alma, MI)- even though it wasn't factory Lincoln paint, it's a perfect match.

Next may be the rusty nick on the right rear door and the scuff on the front bumper....